Resources companies created $36 billion in gross regional product for Queensland over the 12-month period -- a 40% increase on the resources sector’s economic contribution in 2010-11, QRC chief executive Michael Roche said.

“On top of that direct spending, the sector via its high capital intensity and linkages with sectors such as transport, construction and manufacturing, supported and created another 416,000 jobs in those other sectors,” he said.

“Queensland resource companies also paid $3.2 billion in royalties to the Queensland Government and about $11 billion in taxes to the Federal Government in 2011-12.

“This economic contribution by the resources sector is an extraordinary outcome for Queenslanders when you consider the sector's physical footprint covers just 0.09 percent of the state’s land mass.”

Roche said the downturn in coal is being offset by the diversity of other commodities produced in the state.

The strongest growth in resources sector spending occurred in the Wide Bay-Burnett (+144%), the North West (+102%) and the Far North (+80%).

“The challenge now is to ensure that there is a strong pipeline of projects across all commodities to sustain and grow the resources sector in Queensland,” Roche said.

“Achieving that strong pipeline of new projects will require a clear focus on addressing cost disadvantages such as workforce inflexibility, ballooning tax and royalty imposts and regulatory green tape and red tape.”

Queensland minister for natural resources and mines Andrew Cripps said the resources sector would benefit from greater investment certainty through legislative reforms introduced into the Queensland parliament today.

The amendments would introduce a competitive tendering process to explore Queensland’s highly prospective coal tenures, he said.

“Changes proposed through the Mining and Other Legislation Amendment Bill 2012 will expand and improve the competitive tendering process introduced earlier this year,” Cripps said.

“The Newman Government has already issued tenders for the first petroleum and gas tenures available through competitive tendering and this Bill will extend this approach to include exploration permits for coal.

“This new process of allocating exploration rights will deliver a consistent approach across the resources sector and ensure all Queenslanders benefit from the timely development of the state’s most resource-rich areas.

“Introducing a competitive process to secure exploration tenure will ensure the most appropriate explorers with a commitment to resource development secure the rights to explore highly prospective land.”

Cripps said the Bill also proposed measures to underpin the future development of the Aurukun bauxite resource on Cape York and other planned resource projects in the region.

“Given the vast area of the Aurukun bauxite resource it is possible that following the tender process the State may select more than one proponent to develop different parts of the resource area,” he said.

“The Bill will create certainty for industry by making provision for multiple agreements under different parts of the Mineral Resources Act 1989.

“It will also clarify the process for cancellation of a mineral development licence and mining lease for the Aurukun bauxite resource project.”